Teriyaki Turkey Burgers and Homemade BBQ Sauce

When I mentioned that I had a craving for grilling and the desire for burgers the other day in my Homemade Whole Wheat Brioche Hamburger Buns post, these are the burgers I was talking about – Teriyaki Turkey Burgers and some Homemade Teriyaki BBQ Sauce.

I’m kind of sad to be writing about this delicious warm, weather grilled meal today because the weather has been kind of nasty all week. Windy, cloudy, and cool. Not cold enough to feel like winter but cool enough that I feel like shouting to the sun, “Hello? Where have you gone?”

I’ve not been a regular user of ground turkey in the past, but when I saw a package at Costco a month or so ago I thought that it might be a nice change to give it a try.

These turkey burgers turned out so moist and flavorful, but you could certainly use ground beef too if that’s what you prefer. But I think I’ll be using ground turkey more often than I used to!

I’ve never made my own barbecue sauce before, and not that I had anything against it. We just don’t really use barbecue sauce very often. This time I new I wanted a more specific flavor to my BBQ sauce and set out to try for a tangy teriyaki flavor to add to these yummy grilled burgers.

With school winding down for the summer next week, I am longing for the weather to be more predictably pleasant so I can spend more time outside grilling.

Although it feels somewhat strange that school only has a few days left until “summer” is here, because it doesn’t really feel like summer heat yet, and I’m grateful for that.

Last year our summer was so hot so early and really unenjoyable. We hardly spent any time in our backyard, and that made me sad. I love spring and summertime grilling, the smell of the food cooking outdoors and the sounds of the kids playing (when they’re playing nicely) outside.

What are you most looking forward to now that summer is almost here? Do you have anything special planned for Memorial Day?

Desserts

A quick note – I’m going to be taking a few weeks off to spend with my kids now that school is just about over. I’ve got some great guest posters lined up to inspire you with delicious recipes and photos. I love seeing what they’ve cooked up and I know you will too!

Directions:

For the Turkey Burgers

Heat the oil in a small saute pan. Saute the diced onion until tender, about 3-5 minutes, over medium heat. Remove from heat. In a medium bowl, combine the onion, soy sauce, pepper, ginger and apricot preserves. Add the ground turkey, working with your hands to evenly distribute the ingredients.

Divide into six 1/4 lb. patties. Set aside until ready to grill.

Grill over medium-high heat, 3-5 minutes per side - or until cooked through. At the same time, grill sliced fresh pineapple and onion slices.

In a medium sauce pan, heat the canola oil over medium-high heat. Add the onion and saute for 3-5 minutes, until tender. Add the garlic and ginger and saute for an additional minute, until fragrant.

Stir in the pepper, soy sauce, tomato paste, and honey. Whisk until well mixed. Combine the pineapple juice and water. Whisk in the cornstarch. Pour this mixture into the BBQ sauce, whisking to combine.

Bring mixture to a boil, then reduce heat to low and simmer for 20-30 minutes. Then, puree the mixture in a food processor until smooth. Stir in sesame seeds if desired and serve. Keeps in the refrigerator for about a week.

How did I *just* find this website, when it’s obvs. been pumping out such fabulous food for so long! LOVE! I will subscribe.

I do remember you talking about these burgers. 😉 I am not a big fan of BBQ sauce either, much to my husband and 3 boys dismay. I did make my own BBQ sauce last summer and it was excellent, much better than jarred and healthier too. I am very impressed and excited that this recipe doesn’t call for any sugar! Yay You! ;} love the ginger addition as well. Aaaaaand I’ve been wanting to make my own buns so I’m excited for that as well. Thank you!

Oh, I wanted to tell you that in case you’re eating ground turkey for health reasons (as opposed to ground beef) it’s only healthier if the package says “Ground Turkey Breast”, which I’m pretty sure Costco’s isn’t cuz I used to buy it too. Believe it or not, if it’s regular ground turkey then it contains more sodium than ground beef, just as much fat and LESS protein. Just a FYI.

Our family enjoys eating burgers but we like to use different meats to vary them. I like your Teriyaki Turkey Burger recipe very much and plan to use it soon, cooking the burger patties on the outdoor grill, our favorite cooking style.
Your BBQ sauce ingredients sound great, quite sure the sauce will taste very good. Thank you for the post and nice photos.

I love BBQ sauce and I love turkey burgers! Now if only I could get a few of your homemade hamburger buns. 🙂

I made these for dinner on Saturday. My 11 year old niece helped me. Delicious!! This made HUGE burgers and I still have a ton of meat leftover. I am turning them into meatloaf muffins topped with the BBQ sauce for dinner tonight! Will definitely make this recipe again.

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Hello! I'm Katie, author of GoodLife Eats Etc. where I share what I find in my life. A mix of great recipes, family memories, adventures, good reads, and anything else that I love is what you will discover here.